This invention relates to water skis, and, more particularly, to a slalom water ski which has assymetrical sides to provide the ski with a strong side and a weak side.
A slalom water ski includes a pair of foot bindings which are located along the longitudinal centerline of the ski. The skier has one foot in the front binding and one foot in the rear binding. Some skiers prefer to ski with their right foot in the front binding, and others prefer to ski with their left foot in the front binding.
Because the position of the feet are fixed, all slalom skiers have trouble turning in one direction. A skier with his right foot forward has trouble turning to the left. A skier with his left foot forward has trouble turning to the right. This is because the position of the body is different during right and left turns. For a skier who skis with his right foot forward, right turns are called strong side or on side turns, and left turns are called weak side or off side turns. Conversely, for a left-foot-forward skier, the left side is his strong side and the right side is his weak side.
During a weak side turn, the skier's body is more "closed" to the boat and his weight is farther forward. When the skier reaches during a weak side turn, more weight gets transferred to his front foot. This in turn puts more of the ski in the water which is what is needed on the weak side to get maximum deceleration. During a strong side turn, the skier's body is more "open" to the boat, and therefore more weight is on the rear foot.
Heretofore, slalom ski designs were compromises because one design was used by both right-foot-forward skiers and by left-foot-forward skiers.